Christian Doidge helped Hibernian avoid Scottish Gas Scottish Cup humiliation with a 1-0 fourth-round victory against League Two side Forfar.
A saved Joe Newell penalty along with plenty of missed chances led to a frustrating afternoon for the Premiership side before Doidge rose highest to grab the winner in the 69th minute.
Lewis Stevenson returned to the starting line-up as Nick Montgomery made three changes from their last outing before the winter break against Motherwell alongside James Jeggo and Rudi Molotnikov.
Roberto Nditi and Josh Skelly came in for the Station Park side as Ray McKinnon played a 4-5-1 with the hope of catching his opponents on the break.
Hibs were under the cosh immediately and were given a fright twice within quick succession on three minutes. An Andy Munro knockdown was smashed goalwards by Seb Ross, forcing David Marshall to clip the ball past the left-hand post, before a Stuart Morrison header from the subsequent corner smacked off the right post.
Forfar continued to be in the ascendancy in the opening exchanges with Ross swinging a corner towards Matty Allan that was cleared off the line by Doidge before Mark Whatley fired over.
The Easter Road outfit started to threaten as the half progressed when a Jair Tavares cross found Molotnikov who steered his header wide.
The Edinburgh club were huffing and puffing for that elusive opener and were awarded a penalty on 31 minutes after Nditi fouled Stevenson inside the area. Newell stepped up from 12 yards but a superb save from Marc McCallum denied the Hibs playmaker.
After an underwhelming opening half, Hibs looked to create a spark just a few minutes after the restart as Elie Youan played the ball across goal for Doidge but it evaded the Englishman.
Despite a difference of three leagues between the sides, the hosts almost broke the deadlock on 57 minutes with Ross flashing an effort narrowly wide.
The opener finally came on 69 minutes for the Premiership side. A Tavares free-kick from the left gave the home defence problems and Doidge jumped above McCallum to guide his header into an empty net.
'The serve to win Wimbledon' - Guardiola admits Man City pressure heading into final day
Pep Guardiola believes Manchester City will feel pressure similar to "the serve to win Wimbledon" when they look to secure the Premier League title on the final day of the season.
The Citizens took a giant stride towards clinching a record-breaking fourth successive top-flight crown with a 2-0 win over Tottenham on Tuesday.
Erling Haaland struck twice in the second half as City leapfrogged Arsenal to top spot, while moving two points clear of the Gunners with one match remaining.
Guardiola's side, who welcome West Ham to the Etihad Stadium on the final day, are red-hot favourites to seal the deal with a victory, with Opta predicting they have an 84.3 per cent chance of winning the league now.
But the Spaniard admits it is not a foregone conclusion and will not be plain sailing, and highlighted similar memorable examples of where City have had to really dig deep to get over the line.
"The tennis players say 'the serve to win Wimbledon', the last game is the most difficult one," he told BBC Sport. "We know what we're playing for. The tension is there."
"[The players] were playing for the consequences of the result [in the first half against Tottenham]," he told reporters in his news conference. "When you do that, you are going to lose the Premier League. You cannot perform to your level. They are human beings, I understand the pressure.
"Not even Arsenal played well against Manchester United [the Gunners' 1-0 win at Old Trafford]. They knew if they did not win there, they would not win the Premier League. It will be the same on Sunday for us against West Ham.
"We will feel the pressure. Look at Aston Villa a few seasons ago, 2-0 down with 15 minutes to go. Sergio Aguero against QPR, went to 93 minutes. It is normal. That is why we talk and say everyone has to relax, and do what they have to do. That is all."
LaLiga runners-up finish very difficult for Girona, boss Michel says
Michel knows it will not be easy for Girona to secure a second-place finish in LaLiga after they slipped to a 1-0 home loss to Villarreal on Tuesday.
But the players will give their all to try and finish an impressive season on a high, the coach vowed.
After losing at home to Villarreal, Girona are third on 75 points, one behind Barcelona, who have a game in hand.
"I see it as very difficult," Michel told reporters. "Barca are already in second place with two wins and can win all three games. It's a very complicated situation for second place.
"I see everyone in the team really fired up. These players just have to be applauded for the season they are having.
"After winning against Barcelona we had two games we could have won and we only got one point."
Girona visit Valencia, ninth in the league, on Sunday. They conclude their campaign at home against lowly-ranked Granada on May 25. Barca's remaining league fixtures include Almeria, Rayo Vallecano and Sevilla.
Michel was nevertheless proud of his team and the fans despite the disappointing result.
"They [the fans] have shown us that they are with the team, that they are happy with the way we do things. They know that together we are much stronger. I am very proud of the fans," the Spaniard said.
With their best finish of 10th coming in the 2017-18 and 2022-23 campaigns, Girona's place in next season's Champions League is in doubt.
According to The Times, Premier League reigning champions Manchester City and their sister club Girona will not both be able to compete in the tournament unless Abu Dhabi's City Football Group, who acquired 47 per cent of the LaLiga club in 2017, reduce their shareholding in one of the teams.
'The foundations are really fragile' - Postecoglou reeling after Spurs' defeat to Man City
Ange Postecoglou claimed the foundations at Tottenham are "really fragile" after a 2-0 defeat to Manchester City put paid to their Champions League qualification hopes.
Erling Haaland struck twice in the second half as City leapfrogged Spurs' bitter rivals Arsenal to return to the Premier League summit heading into the final day.
Postecoglou had been left flabbergasted in the build-up by Tottenham fans claiming they would be happy to lose to Pep Guardiola's side in order to dent the Gunners' title bid.
And while there was a generally flat atmosphere inside the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, home supporters were filmed celebrating City's opening goal while others chanted "are you watching Arsenal?"
The head coach, who was also captured arguing with a Spurs fan, was left far from impressed as his side's top-four hopes ended, with Aston Villa securing a place in next season's Champions League at their expense.
"The foundations are really fragile," he said. "The last 48 hours have shown me that. "It's inside the club, outside the club, everywhere. It's been an interesting exercise. It's just my observations.
"I can't dictate what people do. They're allowed to express themselves any way they want. But when we've got late winners in games, it's because the crowd has helped us.
"Maybe, I'm out of step, but I just don't care, I just want to win. I want to be successful at this football club; that's why I was brought in. So how other people want to feel, and what their priorities are, are of zero interest to me.
"I know what's important to build a winning team - that's what I need to concentrate on."
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